Factors Affecting Tropical Tree Damage and Survival after Catastrophic Wind Disturbance

The structure and dynamics of cyclone‐prone tropical forests are driven in part by variation in tree species resistance to and survival after wind‐induced structural damage. We determined the factors associated with tree damage and 3‐yr survival following Category 5 Cyclone Olaf on the Polynesian island of Ta'u, American Samoa. Despite sustaining a high rate of severe damage (34.6% of all trees snapped, 23.0% uprooted), system resilience was high with 74.3 percent stem survival overall and an annual mortality rate of 7.9 percent compared with 2.1 percent in nearby undisturbed late successional forest. Three‐yr survival rate of trees sustaining severe damage was 63.1 percent, compared to about 89 percent for trees sustaining only branch loss or defoliation. Three‐yr survival differed according to damage type, 78.5 percent after snapping vs. 38.4 percent after uprooting. Species differed widely in resistance to and survival after snapping and uprooting. Several species and individual traits were associated with the probability of snapping or uprooting; however, wood density was the only species trait consistently, and negatively, associated with the probability of sustaining either damage type. Survival after snapping was negatively associated with the proportion of the tree snapped off, which was determined by individual tree architecture. Species growth rate was negatively associated with survival after uprooting, indicating the importance of shade tolerance for survival after uprooting. Thus, whereas species traits seemed to exclusively underpin resistance to and survival after uprooting, they only partly accounted for snapping resistance, and did not determine the intensity of snap damage or survival after snapping. Our results highlight the importance of considering each damage type separately when considering ecological trade‐offs.     

Scaling up the diversity–resilience relationship with trait databases and remote sensing data: the recovery of productivity after wildfire

Understanding the mechanisms underlying ecosystem resilience – why some systems have an irreversible response to disturbances while others recover – is critical for conserving biodiversity and ecosystem function in the face of global change. Despite the widespread acceptance of a positive relationship between biodiversity and resilience, empirical evidence for this relationship remains fairly limited in scope and localized in scale. Assessing resilience at the large landscape and regional scales most relevant to land management and conservation practices has been limited by the ability to measure both diversity and resilience over large spatial scales. Here, we combined tools used in large‐scale studies of biodiversity (remote sensing and trait databases) with theoretical advances developed from small‐scale experiments to ask whether the functional diversity within a range of woodland and forest ecosystems influences the recovery of productivity after wildfires across the four‐corner region of the United States. We additionally asked how environmental variation (topography, macroclimate) across this geographic region influences such resilience, either directly or indirectly via changes in functional diversity. Using path analysis, we found that functional diversity in regeneration traits (fire tolerance, fire resistance, resprout ability) was a stronger predictor of the recovery of productivity after wildfire than the functional diversity of seed mass or species richness. Moreover, slope, elevation, and aspect either directly or indirectly influenced the recovery of productivity, likely via their effect on microclimate, while macroclimate had no direct or indirect effects. Our study provides some of the first direct empirical evidence for functional diversity increasing resilience at large spatial scales. Our approach highlights the power of combining theory based on local‐scale studies with tools used in studies at large spatial scales and trait databases to understand pressing environmental issues.     

Does Restoration Enhance Regeneration of Seasonal Deciduous Forests in Pastures in Central Brazil?

The goal of restoration is to accelerate ecosystem recovery, but in ecosystems that naturally regenerate rapidly restoration techniques need to be selected carefully to facilitate rather than impede natural recovery. We compared the effects of five restoration techniques, such as plowing the soil, removing grasses, adding forest litter, seeding, and planting nursery‐growing seedlings, on the regeneration of seasonal deciduous forest trees in four abandoned pastures in central Brazil. We monitored all woody stems immediately prior to treatments and again 14 months after the treatments. We recorded an average of 16,663 tree stems per hectare and a total of 83 species before implementing treatments. Planting strongly increased species richness; adding litter and seeding had weaker positive effects on richness; and plowing and grass removal had no effect. Plowing substantially reduced the density of naturally established stems. Despite the high survival of planted seedlings, stem density in planting treatments did not change because the tractor and digging holes to plant seedlings caused mortality of naturally regenerating seedlings. Tree stems grew more in the grass release plots than in the control plots. Our results suggest that early succession of seasonal deciduous forest in pastures in the region studied does not need to be stimulated once the perturbation is stopped and that intensive restoration efforts may actually slow recovery. We recommend only enrichment planting of seedlings that are not able to resprout.     

Regeneration of Seasonal Deciduous Forest Tree Species in Long-Used Pastures in Central Brazil

We tested the relationship between the length of pasture use and the density, richness, and composition of naturally regenerating tropical seasonal deciduous forest in pastures. We sampled regenerating trees in 25 pastures distributed in four age classes ranging from < 6 to 40 yr of use. Density and composition of regenerating trees did not change with pasture age, but richness was lower in 25- and 40-yr-old pastures. Nonetheless, a number of species seem to be able to resprout even after 40 yr of ranching.     

Ecological characteristics of Brachychiton populneus (Sterculiaceae) (kurrajong) in relation to the invasion of urban bushland in south‐western Australia

Brachychiton populneus (Sterculiaceae) (Schott et Endl.) R. Br. (kurrajong) is a small tree that occurs naturally ranging from southern Queensland to Victoria. It has been widely planted as an ornamental tree in south‐western Australia. In Kings Park, B. populneus has moved from cultivation to become a weed in the adjoining bushland reserve. The aim of this study was to examine the ecology of B. populneus and the Kings Park environment in order to identify the particular conjunction of characteristics that have led to the species becoming a weed. The highest density of kurrajongs (69.3 trees ha^–1) was observed in the most disturbed area of Kings Park, and there was a strong relationship between density of B. populneus and disturbance (P = 0.058). The most striking feature of the invasion was the tendency of B. populneus to occur beneath other tree species, and this was attributed to birds feeding on transported fruit in trees and rats building seed caches at their base. Mature trees produced large amounts of viable seed, but rates of seed predation were high. Weevils, beetle larvae and omnivorous vertebrates such as Australian ravens, magpies and introduced black rats were observed eating seeds. The foraging behaviour of the vertebrates may facilitate the dispersal of seeds for relatively long distances away from parent plants. Seeds that escape predation form a transient seed bank and germinate with the onset of the winter rains. Early in their development, seedlings allocate resources to form a large tap‐rooted tuber that has substantial starch and water reserves, allowing seedlings to survive the long dry and hot summers in Perth. The study observed that B. populneus could survive at least one fire by resprouting from basal dormant buds. Brachychiton populneus appears to have become a weed in Kings Park because, first, it is dispersed widely into new sites through the foraging behaviour of vertebrates and once germinated has no grazing pressure, and, second, its development of a root tuber and ability to resprout means the seedlings are resilient in this frequently disturbed Mediterranean environment. While management of existing plants is relatively straightforward, continued vigilance will be required to avoid reinvasion.     

云南哀牢山中山湿性常绿阔叶林树种萌生特征研究

在云南省哀牢山徐家坝地区选择保存完好的原生林与20多年前受到砍伐的森林两种类型的样地。通过调查其中各树种的更新方式和萌生状况,探讨该地区砍伐林的主要恢复途径、树种的萌生特征。结果表明,在种子萌发、地面萌生和地上萌生三种更新方式中,地上萌生所占的比例最大,尤其是变色锥、木果柯、蒙自连蕊茶等树种。在砍伐林中,<0.5m残桩上的萌枝数量显著高于1～2m以及≥2m高的残桩;萌生位置距地面高度与全株高度之比(以下简称萌高比)<0.1处所具有的萌枝数量显著高于其它位置;而在原生林中,残桩高度对萌枝数量无影响,萌高比<0.1处所具有的萌枝数量显著高于萌高比为0.5～0.9处的。